Father?
by L'il Senzu
Summary: What exactly is a father? One night, while Gohan is tucking Goten in, Goten asks him this. If a father is more than biological, than how can Gohan explain that Goku is his father? Gohan POV. kinda dumb, but i was bored. please RR


Okay, this is just a short drabble, nothing special. But I always thought that Goku wasn't a real good father to Gohan, or even a real father for Goten. I figured that Gohan was a better father than he was, and I thought, if I were Goten, I'd think the same thing. So, this is just an idea of what might've happened if Goten had asked Gohan a very odd question.  
  
This does suck, just to let you know. But read anyway. Flames welcome. I have no self esteem anyway.  
  
Don't own DBZ. Don't make money off of this. (how could I? No one would pay money for this)  
  
Father?  
  
Sitting on Goten's bed, I stared at him. Wow, he looked so much like dad, more every day. And he acted like him too. It kind of made me sad. I missed dad, but there really wasn't all that much to miss.  
  
I had been trying to add it up in my head, and I think I've realized that I've barely spent much longer than three years with my dad since I was four years old, and that is counting the year we spent in the hyperbolic time chamber. That had been nice. Even though we had been training to defend against another dark foe, it had been nice to spend so much time with just him and me. It was just kind of disappointing that we had to spend it like that, because he only had one day to spare.  
  
But it doesn't matter to me, not much anymore. I am grown up, well, at least pretty grown up. I'm seventeen now. Goten is six. I worry about him. I had a dad for a good seven years, close to eight years, maybe. He hadn't had one at all. He doesn't seem to understand when I say, 'dad'. He knows who Goku is, though. Mom and the others mention that enough for him to know it. A lot of the time I even refer to him as Goku. It just makes it easier to explain, if Goten hears me, and easier to handle. There was another reason, something deeper to me.  
  
I asked Goten once, whom he thought Goku was. His answer was, "Goku's the guy that saved Earth. He's the hero everyone loves. And Goku's the guy that makes mommy cry." I had been pretty surprised by that answer--- I hadn't known he had seen mom cry, I had thought she had stopped that. I tried to add some more things about Goku, to give him an idea about just what a great guy he was. Goten understands that he was good and a hero and we all love him, but I really don't think he could ever see Goku as he was to me.  
  
"Gohan?"  
  
I looked at him. From his look I guess I've been starring at him for a while. "Yeah, Goten?" I asked.  
  
"Nothing. You were just zoned out." He said.  
  
I shrugged an apology. Then I went to tuck him in, just like I did every night. "Hey, Gohan?" I looked down at him.  
  
"Yeah?" I asked.  
  
He looked a little uncomfortable. "Gohan, what's a father?"  
  
I stared at him in utter shock. I had not been expecting that. Had I avoided the subject of Goku so much that he really had no clue? I thought about it a second. No, he had asked what a father was, not who his father was. This was going to be hard. I tried to think. Exactly what was a father? I realized suddenly that I couldn't really say too much about Goku. I mean, from what I could recall, his relationship with me hadn't seemed exactly like someone would picture a father and son. We had a bond, but I couldn't explain that to Goten. I decided to give it a try, though.  
  
"Um, that's a tough one, kid." I paused, trying to find the right words to explain this. "A father is someone who cares about you. He loves you a lot, and he would die for you. He teaches you things, and makes you laugh. And when you get in trouble, he yells at you, but its only because he loves you. He wants the best for you, but he likes to play, too. He takes care of you and protects you. He doesn't care if your smart or strong, he loves you just because he's your father." I said slowly.  
  
He stared at me for a second. "Oh." He paused. "Gohan, are you my father?"  
  
My eyes widened a bit. I guess I haven't talked to him enough about Goku. "No, Goten. I'm your brother. Goku is your father." I explained.  
  
He looked confused. "But, what you just said, that's you. You take care of me, and teach me things, and make me laugh. I don't even know Goku. He can't be my father."  
  
I stared at him for the longest time. I had made a mistake. Everything I had said, of course he would assume I was his father. When had Goku been there? When had he played with Goten? When had Goku trained or taught him? When had he held Goten or hugged him? --- When had he ever held or hugged me? I sighed.  
  
"Look, Goten, Goku is your father. He just is. He loves you a lot, he just can't show it." I tried again.  
  
"Where is he? If he is my father, he should be here."  
  
"He's gone. He died, you know that."  
  
"Yeah...I know." I smiled, and tucked him in again. I went to the door. "Gohan?"  
  
"Yeah, kid?"  
  
"You should be my father." He said, and then he rolled over and went to sleep.  
  
I stared at him for another minute, I thought about what I said a father was again.  
  
"I am." I whispered, and shut the door. 


End file.
